This invention relates to a process for producing lipids having a high linoleic acid content and more particularly relates to a process wherein fungi of Pellicularia genus are cultivated in a medium of a carbohydrate or vegetable fiber as a carbon source, and lipids (neutral lipids such as oil and fat and polar lipids such as phospholipid and glycolipid) having a high linoleic acid content are produced from the culture obtained by the above cultivation.
As for microorganisms yielding lipids having a high linoleic acid content reported so far, it has been known that there are those belonging to Amanita genus, Tricholoma genus and Clitocybe genus, and these polar lipid yields of which the contents of linoleic acid are 67%, 69% and 70%, respectively (R. Shaw, Nature, Lond. 213, 86.about.87 (1967)). Further, it has also been found that a fungus belonging to the Agaricus genus yields lipids containing 63.about.74% of linoleic acid (D. H. Hughes, Mushroom Sci., 5, pp. 540.about.546 (1962)). However, materials used as a carbon source in the case where these fungi are employed, have been limited to saccharides. Further, according to these conventional processes the content of linoleic acid in the resulting lipids has barely amounted to 70% at the highest and has been generally low; hence it has not as yet been satisfactory.